[African Americana]

[Three Photographic Postcards Featuring Buildings at the Washington-Carver 4-H Camp, the First Such Camp Constructed for African Americans]

[Clifftop, West Virginia: ca. 1950s]. Three real photo postcards, each 3.5 x 5.25 inches.Very minor wear. Near fine. Item #3465

Three rare images of buildings on the grounds of the Washington Carver 4-H Camp in West Virginia. The camp was built under two federal New Deal programs and opened in 1942 under its original name, West Virginia Negro 4-H Camp; this name is still visible on the sign above the entrance to the Administration Building here. The other two buildings featured here are a cottage and a dormitory. The name of the camp was later changed to honor Booker T. Washington and George Washington Carver, and experienced its peak in the 1950s when it hosted over 1,500 campers each year. The camp is still operated today by the National Park Service but is no longer used exclusively as a camp for African American youth. When the camp was first proposed, African American West Virginia state legislator Fleming Adolphus Jones stated its importance in no uncertain terms: "For the purpose of teaching Negro boys and girls the 4-H standard of living, and to inspire them to lift themselves toward these standards, and to discover and train Negro boys and girls for leadership, and for the purpose of teaching standards of excellence in agriculture, soil conservation, vocational agriculture, and home economics."

Price: $550.00